Kurt Großkurth

Kurt Großkurth (or Grosskurth; 11 May 1909 – 29 May 1975) was a German actor and singer.

Biography

Grosskurth was born in Langenselbold, Germany, in 1909.

He grew up in Rhineland-Palatinate. In the 1920s, he followed his father's wish and went on to study hotel management in Essen, London and Heidelberg. In the early 1930s, he discovered his passion for the stage and he picked up acting and singing in Bavaria. He quickly started performing as a singer, mostly around the Munich area, and guest starred as a tenor in Hamburg and Berlin. After the war, he got hired by several theaters and performed in operettas in Düsseldorf, Munich and Cologne, repeatedly directed by star conductor Franz Marszalek. As the 50s rolled along, he became a familiar movie figure throughout the country. He appeared as a supporting act in a considerable number of productions, which consisted mainly of lighthearted comedies and operettas. Although never seen in a lead role, he performed alongside virtually all of the major actors from post-war Germany. His entire film career spans over ninety movie and TV productions from 1949 to 1975. Several times within two decades, he appeared in the cast of five or six movies coming out the same year. He played the recurring character of a mayor in a popular TV series in the 60s, he could be heard on the radio, and with the 70s came burgeoning international recognition as he landed small roles in major productions. He plays parts in Luchino Visconti's Ludwig as well as in Edward Dymytryk's Bluebeard and in the French George Franju movie La ligne d'ombre. He's also part of the cast in Hollywood classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, although his portrayal of character Harold Gloop, a stereotypical thick butcher, remains uncredited.

Death

Großkurth died in Bad Aibling, Germany, shortly after his 66th birthday, on 29 May 1975, from a traffic accident.

His urn stands on the cemetery wall of Grünwald, near Munich.

Filmography

1950: Wedding with Erika as Jakob 1952: The Smugglers' Banquet as Dikke Charles 1953: Arlette Conquers Paris as Kommissar 1953: The Divorcée (uncredited) 1953: The Night Without Morals 1953: The Little Town Will Go to Sleep 1954: Rose-Girl Resli 1954: Daybreak 1954: Hoheit lassen bitten as Ahlsen 1954: Sun Over the Adriatic as Ronic 1955: The Spanish Fly as Hartmann 1955: Love's Carnival as Nachtportier 1956: Magic Fire as Magdeburg Theatre Manager 1956: as Direktor Otto 1956: Holiday am Wörthersee as Mr. Groß, Hotelkönig aus Chicago 1956: Karussell der Liebe 1956: Hurra - die Firma hat ein Kind as Fabrikant Emil Winninger 1956: Manöverball as Ehemann 1956: The Old Forester House as Herr Engel 1956: The Hunter of Fall as Zollbeamter Niedergstötter 1957: Die verpfuschte Hochzeitsnacht as Raucher im Zug 1957: Tired Theodore as Walter Steinberg 1957: Two Bavarians in the Harem as Selam, Obereunuche (uncredited) 1957: as Zappke 1957: Greetings and Kisses from Tegernsee as Amandus 1958: Mikosch, the Pride of the Company as Otto Schummrich 1958: as Director Schuehlein 1958: as Angerholzer 1958: Gräfin Mariza as Dragomir 1958: as Schorsch Glöckle 1959: La Paloma 1959: Hunting Party 1959: Mikosch of the Secret Service as Otto Schummrich 1959: Mandolins and Moonlight 1959: as Maximilian Moosbach, Bürgermeister 1959: Kein Mann zum Heiraten as Leo Hammerschmidt 1960: Hit Parade 1960 as Kaffehausbesitzer 1960: Conny and Peter Make Music as Sulzbach 1960: Willy the Private Detective as Ernst Abelmann 1960:We Will Never Part as Marcello Ponella 1961: Der fröhliche Weinberg (TV Movie) 1961: Am Sonntag will mein Süßer mit mir segeln gehn as Himberger, Evelyns Vater 1961: Our Crazy Aunts as Herrmann Schmatzer 1962: Drei Liebesbriefe aus Tirol as Direktor A.B. Cobold 1962: as Otto Wehrkamp, Konservenfabrikant 1962: Dance with Me Into the Morning as Himself 1962: When the Music Plays at Wörthersee as Chauffeur Adalbert 1962: The Post Has Gone as Teutobald Stolze 1962: Die lustigen Vagabunden / Das haben die Mädchen gern as Tavernenwirt 1963: Our Crazy Nieces as Hyacinth Grad 1963: Übermut im Salzkammergut as Ruppich 1963: Hochzeit am Neusiedler See / Das Spukschloß im Salzkammergut as Rudi Lustig 1964: Our Crazy Aunts in the South Seas as Hyacinth 1964: Holiday in St. Tropez as Carlos Fonti 1964: Seven Hours of Gunfire as St. James 1965: The Last Tomahawk as Koch 1966: Spukschloß im Salzkammergut 1966: Ski Fever as Max 1967: Heubodengeflüster as Pischke 1970: Die Jungfrauen von Bumshausen as Bürgermeister Ehrentraut 1971: Olympia - Olympia (TV Movie) 1971: Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory as Mr. Gloop (uncredited) 1971: Obszönitäten / Mädchen, die sich lieben lassen as Der reiche Alte 1972: Bluebeard as Von Sepper's Friend 1972: Ludwig II as Minister of Finance 1973: The Countess Died of Laughter as Monk 1973: La ligne d'ombre as Alfred and Ernest Jacobus